| Re: Sierra Club -- cycling is scary
On 5 Jan 2005 12:15:10 -0800, "SlowRider" <jrogers80526@hotmail.com>
wrote:
>Matt O'Toole wrote:
>> The enemy of your enemy is not your friend. I hate the Sierra Club.
>They exist
>> mostly for the benefit of the people on their payroll. If it's not
>to line
>> their pockets, it's to feather their caps.
>
>You're welcome to hate whomever you wish, of course. The Sierra Club
>certainly has its share of flakes and that article does include some
>stupid comments, but not all chapters or members are the same.
>
>I've been a Sierra Club member for about 10 years. The chapter I
>belong to has a few flakes, but our membership is predominantly
>scientists, engineers and teachers. Our chapter is involved with our
>community: we pick up trash at local parks; we help the county plant
>trees for erosion control; we sponsor film festivals and lectures; we
>organize outings, etc. To my knowledge, nobody in our chapter gets
>paid.
>
>As for the cycling article: if their data are correct, then I'm
>surprised by the number of cyclists who drink and ride. I'm
>comfortable on public roads -- alert, but comfortable -- but there's no
>way I'd go out there with a couple of beers in me.
>
>The night riding statistic doesn't surprise me so much -- without
>proper reflection/lighting we can be damned hard to see. It's worth
>taking note even if the rest of the article is screwy.
>
>JR
It isn't surprising that riding drunk leads to accidents. Balance is
pretty damn important to riding a bike and I bet it goes ride down the
tubes when you drink. Is it possible that 1/4 bicycle accidents
involves a tipsy rider? Who checks to see? I don't think breathalyzer
testing is required for a bike rider.
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